Sheriff’s Blotter

A deputy met with a reporting party at the sheriffís office to take a report of theft. The theft was determined to go back over a period of two years after the victim and his wife hired a male subject as a ranch hand for part time work. After several months of employment and after developing the trust of the man and his wife, the ranch hand recommended several of his family members as housekeepers. At his recommendation, the victim and his wife hired the ranch handís mother, a sister or cousin, another woman whose relationship has not been determined. Multiple other suspects include a male cousin and another sister to the ranch hand. The reporting parties said that they first started to suspect something was wrong when they began having problems with their checking account. They found that someone had been taking single checks from checkbooks, taking them from several books down in a new box of checks, and would remove both the check and the carbon. The checks were taken out of sequence, and all checks were cashed by one of the many suspects. The victims confirmed that the most recent checks were cashed by their ranch hand by viewing surveillance video at their bank. The first check known to be stolen was cashed over a year and a half ago, and the victims are not sure exactly how many checks were stolen and cashed. They have tentatively totalled $1,390 in thefts so far. One check was found to be cashed in Scottsdale, Ariz. All of the suspects had access to the home. The victims at first attempted to work out the issues with the ranch hand, but when he was confronted after they viewed surveillance video of him cashing checks, he denied stealing them, and said his cousin had stolen them. He then became belligerent and uncooperative, and the victims now wish to press charges against all parties. The suspectís new location of employment was identified.

SATURDAY, AUG. 25

A deputy traveling east on Hwy. 160 clocked a sedan traveling at 78 mph in a 65 mph zone. He turned around and got behind the vehicle and activated his emergency lights, but the driver did not respond, so he activated his siren. The driver still did not respond, and the deputy followed her for approximately 1/2 mile before she noticed the deputy and pulled over. As the deputy spoke with the female driver, he could smell the odor of un-burnt marijuana coming from the interior of the vehicle, and asked her about it. The driver denied that there was anything in the car, and then asked if she could speak with her passenger to make sure that she didnít have anything on her. The driver was told that she could wait to speak with the passenger and that the deputy would ask her. As he spoke with the driver, he could see that her pupils were very dilated behind her sunglasses, but she denied smoking anything, despite physical indicators to the contrary. She then said she had smoked it the previous night. The driver failed voluntary roadside maneuvers and was placed under arrest. A search of her car revealed a digital scale with a white powdery substance in a purse on the back seat. The driver admitted that the substance was cocaine. When asked if there were any other narcotics in the car, she said no, but quickly stated that there was actually a little coke in her jacket pocket in the car. Another deputy retrieved a zip-lock baggie with cocaine in it. The driver asked if she could call her mom to come pick up her car. She was placed on Felony Hold for possession of a schedule II drug, DUID, speeding, possession of drug paraphernalia, and was left in the care and custody of jail staff.

MONDAY, AUG. 27

Dispatch aired a REDDI report of a pickup truck traveling on a county road off of Hwy. 145 which had run the stop sign, almost causing a collision with motorcyclists on the highway. A deputy responded to the area and observed the pickup traveling towards him straddling the center line, and it pulled back into its lane as it passed the deputy, who turned around to follow it. He watched as it meandered over the center line and then off the edge of the road into the grass. He pulled the truck over and spoke with a female driver, who had several physical indicators of intoxication. She stated that she had only had a martini. She failed voluntary roadside maneuvers and was placed under arrest. She asked the deputy to have her daughter come pick up her truck.

THURSDAY, AUG. 30

A deputy was dispatched to speak to a woman in reference to a dog attacking her friendís dog. The friend stated that her two dogs were outside playing, and she heard a commotion and went outside to see a black dog with a blue collar and a stub tail attacking one of the dogs in her front yard. She knew the dog and believed she knew who its owner was. She picked up a handful of rocks from her driveway to throw at the dog, and it ran away. She went to find her dog and noticed a large cut on the dogís hind end. The deputy took pictures of the dogís wound for evidence. The woman stated that she has tried to talk to the dogís owners about chaining up their dog or fixing their fence so it canít get out because this wasnít the first incident. She also stated that each incident seems to get worse in nature and she was worried that someone would get hurt, and that the dog attempts to attack her almost every day when she tries to get her mail and she has to throw rocks at him to keep him away. The deputy contacted the dogís owner and noted their dog following the description given. He was advised of the incident, and said that he had talked with the woman about previous issues and that he needs to figure out a way to keep the dog in the yard but hasnít done so yet. The manís wife, who is the primary owner of the dog, arrived home and after being told of the incident, told the deputy that the two women have been trying to get them into trouble for their dog for awhile now. She also stated that there is another dog in the neighborhood that looks identical to hers and also has a blue collar. Despite this explaination, she was issued two summons.

FRIDAY, AUG. 31

A deputy traveling south on Mildred St. observed a mini-van drive the wrong way down Montezuma Ave. He had seen the vehicle before this as it meandered around as if the driver was struggling to negotiate turns. The mini-van pulled into the north end of the parking lot at the swimming pool and came to a stop. The deputy contacted the occupants of the van, and held the door closed as the driver tried to exit and told him to turn off the engine. The male driver uttered a nonsensical answer, and the deputy noticed an open, half-full bottle of whisky on the floorboard behind the passenger seat. The driver was extremely intoxicated, and the deputy also noticed an empty bottle of vodka on the floorboard of the front seat at the female passengerís feet. The driver didnít have a license, registration, or proof of insurance; the female told the deputy they were just parking. Her speech was extremely slurred and bordering on incoherent, and she appeared to be drooling while she spoke. The driver was identified as having his license revoked for habitual traffic offender, and his wife had only a Colorado ID card only. The driver was so drunk he almost fell out of the mini-van; his pants were unzipped and covered with dirt. The deputy did not attempt to administer roadside maneuvers due to the level of intoxication. He put the driver in his patrol vehicle, where he promptly fell asleep, and spoke to the woman who gave him an obscene sexual explanation for where they were going. The deputy ascertained that the mini-van belongs to the woman, but she had no insurance or registration for it. She told the deputy she wanted to walk home, and nearly fell out of it and stumbled away. The deputy attempted to administer a breath test to the driver, but he was too intoxicated to blow into the mouthpiece successfully. He was issued a Felony Hold and charged with numerous driving violations.

MONDAY, SEPT. 3

A deputy was dispatched to a residence in reference to some prescription drugs being stolen. He spoke to the owner who told him that he left his house to go fishing that morning and returned home later that day to find that his prescription bottle of Loritab was missing and also a box with approximately 100 syringes was missing. The reporting party said that he could not get another refill on the prescription until the end of September, and he valued the pills at $90 and the syringes at $30. He said that there did not appear to be anything else missing from the residence. The deputy noted that there were several other prescription bottles that were not taken and another box of syringes was left behind. There were no signs of forced entry at the doors or windows. The owner said he thought someone could have come in through the back door because it would not lock. There were no usable fingerprints, and the neighbors all said they did not see anyone around the manís residence while he was gone.

Community calendar

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Monday, March 30

SouthWest Colorado Concerts presents Quartetto Gelato at M-CHS at 7 p.m. This Canadian quartet is known for clever programming and humor and...